I've been doing the BTD thing for over a year now, and my SWAMI for about 2 months. My routine is to use molasses in my morning Yerba Mate, and stevia in my green tea, smoothies, hot cocoa, and occasionally I'll use agave in the evenings.

Last Passover, I was very new to BTD and I wasn't all that strict about my foods (healthwise) for the one week. This year, I don't want to lose any of the health benefits I've gained, plus I'm just not doing so well right now- I can't see eating foods that might weaken me when I'm already feeling rather weak (at least compared to how I felt a couple of weeks ago- now that I know I can feel that good, I want to experience that!)

After doing the bulk of my non-perishable Passover shopping today, I made a few discoveries: I can't find any of my usual sweeteners for Passover. I don't mind substituting honey for agave, as both are neutral for me, but I can't find stevia or molasses (both beneficials) in kosher-for-Passover packages! Compromising on kashrut (kosherness) is not an option for me.

I have available: white sugar (a black dot for me), brown sugar (also a black dot) and sweet n low (completely unlisted.) I already have the package of sweet-n-low from 2 years when I was doing low-carb, as it's not an item I've ever consumed in large quantities.

How will I make my yerba mate yummy without molasses?

For my green tea, am I better off having honey and eating too many carbs, or eating the toxins in the sacharine? I'm far more concerned about short term reactions (such as getting sleepy from too much sugar) than long term reactions, since Passover only lasts a week, and I'll go back to my beneficial sweeteners the other 51 weeks of the year.

You could always cook pineapple juice down to a syrup. Use applesauce to cut some of the sweetenerin half..

Are you allowed any other juices? Apple juice comes to mind but I don't know how that works with yourSWAMI.

If it were me, I'd mix some honey with some cooked down juice...or see if you can find pineapple juiceor apple juice, frozen in the can -the kind you need to add water to and then you'd have a ready to go fruit concentrate if you use it straight from the can.

You could also cook down prune juice to a thick syrup. Or use any cooked and pureed dried fruit. I makemuffins all the time using no unnatural sweeteners.

I guess it depends on how well your body detoxifies artificial sweeteners. For me personally, I wouldn'twant to use artificial sweeteners...but some people do fine. As for using a toxin, I wouldn't. A blackdot, maybe in small amounts. I guess it's a matter of figuring out how much total sweeteners your foodswill contain the week of Passover....and then decide which foods are necessary and which foods areluxuries, ie, desserts. I know --- Passover has a lot of sweet foods...My daughter in law is doing mostof the cooking this year... She is careful about the gluten...but not about the sugar. I make and bringwhat I know works for me...and my gluten intolerant grandson. But still, I know how challenging thisis. Kosher, GTD and Passover only foods....very complicated.

"The happiest people don't have the best of everything.....they know how to make the best of everything!"

I'm pretty good about avoiding the sweets. My daughters bake them now, and all the kids (my own three plus guests) consume them, and I'm quite capable of having a square inch of a cake to taste it and then stopping, or skipping another sweet altogether.

I wonder how prune juice will taste in the yerba mate in place of molasses- both have a deep, rich flavor and are only moderately sweet. I'm pretty sure I can find that packaged for Passover- I found the prunes themselves easily enough.

But I really need my tea to get going in the mornings, it's a holdover from my coffee days I guess. I know the green tea will taste fine with either honey or fruit juice in it- the question is whether or not the sugar (in either honey or juice) will be too much for me. I usually stick to a teaspoon or so of molasses in my morning Yerba Mate and then stop having sugars for the day (or have the equivilent of 1/4 cup of juice over several mugs of tea). If I substitute honey and/or fruit juice concentrates for all my tea sweetening needs, it's going to triple or quadruple my sugar intake. I honestly wonder if that will have more negative effects on me than the artificial sweetener.